About Our Job
The Denver Public Library (DPL) is a growing urban library system that serves the residents of the City & County of Denver. DPL sees more than 4 million visitors every year across its 27 locations, serves Denver’s most vulnerable communities through outreach and mobile services, hosts thousands of programs a year and manages a collection of more than 1.4 million physical and digital materials. We believe a strong library is vital for a strong community. DPL is committed to serving the evolving needs of Denverites through inspired programming, diverse collections, culturally-representative spaces, and equitable policies & procedures.
For more information, go to denverlibrary.org. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn.
DPL is hiring a full-time Librarian for the Hampden Branch. In this position, you will serve the community through programming, reference, technology assistance, readers’ advisory, and front line customer service. You will foster curiosity through the exploration of recreational and educational resources for all audiences in multiple formats. You can expect to challenge inequity by creating welcoming spaces that foster belonging for all, and by providing technology resources and assistance. Additionally, as a DPL employee you will strengthen connections among staff and community by gathering together to discover creative ways to serve the community. You’ll be expected to honor the public trust by providing the highest level of service and equitable access to reliable information resources on a variety of topics, including the full scope of library services. This position does not have any direct reports though it may occasionally entail being the person in charge or guiding other staff in the absence of management.
About Our Branch
The Hampden Branch is located in Southeast Denver in the Hampden Heights neighborhood. We’re a busy, medium-sized branch with a focus on providing a customer experience that reflects DPL’s Values of Welcoming, Curiosity, Connection, Equity and Stewardship. We pride ourselves on creating a welcoming and inclusive environment where we serve people of all ages from diverse ethnicities, all gender and sexual identities and with varied mental and
physical abilities. Your primary location will be Hampden Branch, however, DPL reserves the right to reassign locations based upon operational and/or staffing needs at any given time.
About you
Our ideal candidate has:
A demonstrated commitment to developing and maintaining a welcoming environment for young people, including babies, toddlers, preschoolers, grade schoolers, and teens.
Experience with reference services, programming, trauma-aware practices, and customer service.
Ability to create and implement innovative services that sparks curiosity.
Skill in providing information to a vastly diverse audience, leading with cultural humility.
Lived experience within the Denver community and/or the community-building skills to build strong ties with the customers and organizations within it.
Knowledge of the core values of librarianship, including: intellectual freedom, privacy, democracy, diversity, sustainability, serving the public good, access to information for all, and library advocacy.
You can expect to work the hours the branch is open, including Saturdays and Wednesday evenings.
We ask that you be willing to take the library outside of its walls by performing outreach activities in the community.
You will also need to be able to approach challenging situations with empathy, compassion, and informed judgment while keeping in mind library use policies and safety of all customers and staff.
Provide a high level of customer service while assisting in circulation tasks in a busy environment with consistent public exposure.
The ideal candidate will be able to meet customers where they are with a compassionate and trauma-aware lens.
We’re looking for someone to plan fun, engaging, and developmentally appropriate early learning programming for children from birth to kindergarten and their adult caregivers. Programming will implement Every Child Ready to Read practices and books and materials that represent a diverse range of characters, identities and experiences.
You will need knowledge of collection maintenance practices and a willingness to regularly audit and update branch or department’s collection for all audiences as well as create captivating displays.
Developing, planning, promoting and implementing culturally inclusive and responsive programming for youth.
Interested candidates must demonstrate a commitment to developing and maintaining a welcoming environment for customers of all ages and backgrounds.